The ability to design is both a science and an art. The science can be
learned through techniques and methods to be covered in this text, but
the art is best learned by doing design. It is for this reason that your
design experience must involve some realistic project experience.Design
should not be confused with discovery. Discovery is getting the first
sight of, or the first knowledge of something, as when Columbus
discovered America or Jack Kilby made the first microprocessor. We can
discover what has already existed, but has not been known before, but a
design is the product of planning and work.We should note that a design
may or may not involve invention. To obtain a legal patent on an
invention requires that the design be a step beyond the limits of the
existing knowledge (beyond the state of the art). Some designs are truly
inventive, but most are not.One thing that should be clear by now is how
engineering design extends well beyond the boundaries of science. The
expanded boundaries and responsibilities of engineering create almost
unlimited opportunities for you.